Cozy Historical Fiction

England, 1922. After their adventures at Westminster, Dora and Rex depart for a quiet month in the Cotswolds. Or at least, that's what everyone thinks. In truth, they're working on a new assignment—investigating rumors that a titled foreigner might be more than he appears. Rex invites the man to his family manor for a rollicking weekend of fun. In between bouts of lawn tennis and parlor games, he and Dora are to uncover the truth about the man's identity. The servants barely have time to unpack everyone's case before the suspected spy is found with an antique dagger sticking from his back.

As quirky as McGill's residents can be, they usually welcome society's oddballs and outcasts into the community with open arms. But the three members of the Lone White Wolf Pack are a different story. The ignorant gang is widely believed to have orchestrated several hate crimes in the area. When the small group's irredeemable leader, Billy Ray Sonner, is found dead in an abandoned motel, most assume it was the result of an accidental overdose. Only Stella and the sheriff have witnessed the crime scene in person, and the smell of cyanide means something more disturbing.

England, 1926. When esteemed detective Lord Edgington and his novice grandson Christopher plan a trip to the beautiful Forest of Dean, they hope for nothing more than a relaxing weekend with old friends. What they discover among the dark halls and secret passageways of Clearwell Castle is a centuries-old injustice and a rivalry that has ripped the area apart. After two apparently unconnected villagers are murdered, Lord Edgington must pick the killer from a parade of cheery locals, cagey aristocrats and their sworn rivals.

1903. Bookish, bespectacled Vita Carew longs to be left to her scientific studies. But, to her chagrin, she cannot avoid the event of the season, a gala at Pemberton Hall. This glamorous concert and sumptuous dinner will mark the Pemberton household’s return to society after a run of misfortune. But disaster strikes as soon as the seafood is served. Vita can only offer first aid as elegant guests fall suddenly ill on all sides. Worse still, she suspects a death has been covered up to avoid interrupting the carefully planned soirée.

When Flavia de Luce is banished to Miss Bodycote's Female Academy in Canada, she’s soon on familiar ground when, on her first night, a mummified body is dislodged from a chimney, and she is presented with a gruesome puzzle to solve. Girls have been disappearing with alarming regularity, leading Flavia to wonder not only how and why but what exactly is the academy's true purpose? Flavia must enter a shadowy world where truth and lies seem interchangeable and no one can be trusted.

On a cold night in February, the popular Lighterman's ball festivities are cut short when a guest of honor, Stephen Bremmer, goes into spasms and abruptly collapses. Once again Inspector Witherspoon returns to the Wrexley Hotel to investigate a murder. The victim was considered a boorish snob who felt entitled to anything and anyone he wanted. Yet despite his Oxford education, he was barely literate, lazy, and prone to make stupid mistakes - his last mistake turned out to be crossing a killer.

When Kat's employer asks for help in clearing her friend's name, Kat trades her kitchen for the homes of Mayfair's wealthiest families. Soon antiquities are disappearing not only from the extravagant households of connoisseurs and collectors but also from the illustrious British Museum. As the thefts increase in frequency, Kat calls upon her friend Daniel McAdam, who has already set himself up in a pawnshop on the Strand as a seedy receiver of stolen goods. When a man is murdered in the shop, Kat must use all of her wits to see that the thieves are caught and justice is done.

The thirty-fourth mystery in Peter Tremayne's long-standing and much-loved series, Revenge of the Stormbringer features 7th-century Irish super-sleuth Sister Fidelma.

While attending an exhibition at the Crystal Palace, young cook Kat Holloway is approached by a woman in distress. Lady Covington is a wealthy widow convinced that her entire family is trying to kill her. Kat feels compelled to help, so she escorts the lady home to discover whether she is delusional or in true danger. When it quickly becomes apparent that the threat is all too real, Kat promises aid.

When guests arrive at a séance to contact a man's lost sons, it becomes clear that everyone has dark secrets - secrets that result in the death of a guest.

It's no rest for the wicked when Kate Shackleton picks up her second professional sleuthing case. But exposing the culprit of a pawn-shop robbery turns sinister when her investigation takes her to the wealthy neighborhoods of Harrogate - and murder is only one step behind. A night at the theater should have been just what the doctor ordered, until Kate stumbles across a body in the doorway. The knife sticking out of its chest definitely suggests a killer in the theater's midst. Kate likes nothing better than a mystery - except solving it.

Jane Austen's Emma has been described as a detective story without a body - except for those who read carefully, there actually is a body, and the potential for an excellent mystery story. Set about a year after Emma closes, The Highbury Murders pays homage to the wit of Jane Austen and the whodunits of Agatha Christie. You do not need to have read Jane Austen's books to enjoy this novel, but if you have - if you regret that she wrote only six - The Highbury Murders is a welcome extension to her world.

The recently rediscovered short story 'The Lost One', perfect for fans of Daphne du Maurier, Santa Montefiore and Anya Seton. First published in Woman's Journal in 1960, and set against the backdrop of unfenced country and dark winding valleys at night, the aptly named 'The Lost One' features The Wind off the Small Isles heroine Perdita West, who brings her characteristic pluck and courage to this classic Mary Stewart tale of suspense and intrigue....

Alone in the midnight hours with nothing but dead leaves, stray cats, and legends of ghosts and ghoulies to accompany him. A sleeping village doesn’t mean a simple shift, though. Between the early risers of the farming community, a badger with a sweet tooth, and getting to know his new workmates, there’s no time for Nick to kick his feet up in the station. And of course there’s Claude Jeremiah Greengrass! Why did he have to retreat hastily down a ladder from a lady’s bedroom and what happened to his trousers and shirt?

Jack and Maggie Harris are adrift on ravaged streets during the London Blitz. Their home is gone. They have nowhere to go and nothing left to lose. With only the memories of their greatest loss - the death of their child during a Christmas years before - Jack and Maggie settle in a seemingly deserted mansion for the night.

The ladies of the Mayfair Orchid and Exotic Plant Society are known for a bit of friendly rivalry, but the backstabbing has never been literal - until now. When Hiram Filmore, an orchid hunter and supplier, is found dead in Mrs. Helena Rayburn's conservatory, Inspector Witherspoon is called in to weed out a murderer. When it comes out that Mrs. Rayburn and her flowery friends knew each other from long ago, Mrs. Jeffries begins to suspect that there's more to unearth about this case than meets the eye.

She'd once been the toast of London, but now scandal has brought her down. Still, pretty, petted Lady Tara Davidson can't believe her new fate. She had wanted to marry for love…but her profligate father has promised her hand to none other than Breccan Campbell, the "Beast of Aberfeldy" and laird of the valley's most despised clan! Well, Tara may have to marry him, but Breccan can't make her love him…can he?

Amory and Milo plan to quietly winter in Italy. But Amory receives an urgent summons to the English countryside. There, Amory and Milo are surprised to discover a group of guests have been invited, led by socialite Isobel Van Allen. Isobel has returned to England after years of social exile to write a sequel to her scandalous first book. Her second incriminating volume, she warns the house's occupants - all of whom were present when one of their companions was killed years ago - will tell everything that really happened that fateful night.

Nominated for both the Agatha and Anthony awards, national best-selling author Susan Wittig Albert introduces a garden club of lady sleuths in Depression-era Alabama. The Darling Dahlias have just inherited a new clubhouse and garden, complete with two beautiful cucumber trees. But before long, these genteel ladies must unravel the mystery about what’s buried beneath one of these trees and the enigma of the dead body that soon turns up.

Mayhem all aboard! One blustery day in October of 1924, newlyweds Mr. and Mrs. Basil Reed travel aboard the recently christened Flying Scotsman, a high-speed steam engine train that travels from London to Edinburgh, for their honeymoon. With only one short stop at York, Ginger anticipates time with her new husband will fly by. She’s wrong. Something terrible has happened in the Royal Mail carriage, which forces the train to stop dead in its tracks. There’s been a death and Chief Inspector Reed has been asked to investigate.